A Norwegian woman sentenced to 16 months in jail in Dubai for having sex outside marriage after she reported an alleged rape said Friday she decided to speak out in hopes of drawing attention to the risks of outsiders misunderstanding the Islamic-influenced legal codes in this cosmopolitan city.

The case has drawn outrage from rights groups and others in the West since the 24-year-old interior designer was sentenced Wednesday. It also highlights the increasingly frequent tensions between the United Arab Emirates' international atmosphere and its legal system, which is strongly influenced by Islamic traditions in a nation where foreign workers and visitors greatly outnumber locals.

"I have to spread the word. ... After my sentence we thought, `How can it get worse?'" Marte Deborah Dalelv told The Associated Press in an interview at a Norwegian aid compound in Dubai where she is preparing her appeal scheduled for early September. (source)

Not to overlook the rape charge, she was also charged with illegal consumption of alcohol. The Emirates have rather confusing laws against alcohol consumption, making drinking alcohol analogous to the Christian Sin against The Holy Ghost:

Alcohol is widely available at many restaurants and bars in Dubai and in the tourist hotels of every other emirate save Sharjah. There is a legal but roundly overlooked requirement to have a license to buy alcohol. The alcohol license is proof that the bearer is a non-Muslim. A passport will not suffice. However, you can purchase alcohol duty-free at the airport to bring into the UAE. Sharjah emirate is completely dry. An alcohol license is required in the emirates of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Ajman; the remaining emirates of Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, and Umm al Quwain do not require any type of license. The requirement is sometimes overlooked at certain stores. (source)

Anyway, her fatal (figuratively) mistake was probably asking a male for help finding her room. Of course, in Sharia-speak this means "Please have sex with me. I will protest just to add to the fun."

Apparently Norway has no extradition agreement with the emirates thus she is left to rot in prison. I don't know why the civilized world doesn't make it clear to these nations that their delusions do not apply to non-Muslims. But no, you wouldn't want to upset the thin-skinned in case that oil stops flowing.